Life on Mars?
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| "Life on Mars?" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Image:Bowie LifeOnMars.jpg | ||
| Single by David Bowie | ||
| from the album Hunky Dory | ||
| B-side(s) | The Man Who Sold the World | |
| Released | 22 June 1973 | |
| Format | 7" single | |
| Recorded | Trident Studios, London, July 1970 | |
| Genre | Glam Rock | |
| Length | 3:48 | |
| Label | RCA 2316 | |
| Producer(s) | Ken Scott | |
| Chart positions | ||
| ||
| David Bowie singles chronology | ||
| "Let's Spend the Night Together" 1973 | "Life on Mars?" 1973 | "Sorrow" 1973 |
- For other uses, see Life on Mars (disambiguation).
Life on Mars? was a single by David Bowie first released in 1971 on the album Hunky Dory. The song featured guest piano work by keyboardist Rick Wakeman, subsequently of Yes.
The song has its origins from an occurrence when Bowie was asked to write English lyrics to a French song ("Comme d'habitude"), the song he came up with was "Even a Fool Learns to Love". The Canadian songwriter Paul Anka bought the rights to the original French version, and rewrote it into an English song called "My Way". Bowie's version was never released. "Life on Mars?" was Bowie's riposte to losing out on a fortune; it has similar chords to "My Way."
The song is about a girl visiting a cinema after an argument with her parents; the final sentence "is there life on Mars?" alludes to an otherwise unmentioned film that presumably poses the same question. The lyrics are oblique, with confusing lines such as "It's on America's tortured brow/That Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow," or, "Now the workers have struck the fame/'Cause Lennon's on sale again."
The song was belatedly issued as a single in June 1973, having long been cited as a standout song and receiving radio airplay. To promote this release, Mick Rock made a simple but striking promotional video, featuring Bowie in a suit performing the song solo against a white backdrop. The single reached UK #3 and stayed in the UK chart for 13 weeks.
In February 1999, Q Magazine listed the single as one of the 100 greatest singles of all time, as voted by the readers. It has continued to chart in the Q magazine best of polls, featuring most recently in the 2006 poll at number 45. A radio 2 poll in 1986 crowned it as the best David Bowie song of all time.
This song had it's own multiple-minute 'solo' in Wes Anderson's Film "The Life Aquatic", a film which, besides this song, features many of Bowie's older singles.
Contents |
[edit] Track listing
- "Life on Mars?" (Bowie) – 3:48
- "The Man Who Sold the World" (Bowie) – 3:55
The Portuguese release of the single had "Black Country Rock" as the B-Side.
[edit] Production credits
- Producers:
- Ken Scott on "Life on Mars?"
- Tony Visconti on "The Man Who Sold the World"
- Musicians:
- David Bowie: vocals, guitar
- Mick Ronson: guitar
- Trevor Bolder: bass
- Mick Woodmansey: drums
- Rick Wakeman: piano on "Life on Mars?"
[edit] Other releases
- It was released as the B-side of the Spanish release of the single "Drive-In Saturday" in April 1973.
- It appeared on two picture disc sets: Fashion and the RCA Life Time Disc Set.
- It appeared on several compilations:
- The Best of David Bowie (Japan 1974)
- Best of Bowie (1980)
- Bowie: The Singles 1969-1993 (1993)
- The Best of 1969/1974 (1997)
- Best of Bowie (2002)
- In 2001 it was released as a single in France, wrapped in a card sleeve together with "The Man Who Sold the World"
- In 2004, it was featured on the soundtrack for the film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.
- In 2006, it was featured on the soundtrack for the first episode of the British TV Series also called Life on Mars.
- In 2006, it was featured in an UK advert for mobile operator 3, with a man on a beach by a campfire playing his guitar. Video on You Tube
[edit] Live versions
- October 1st, 1972 Bowie played this song at The Music Hall, Boston. This was released in 2003 on the bonus disc of the Aladdin Sane - 30th Anniversary Edition.
- A live version recorded at Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, October 20th, 1972 was released on Santa Monica '72.
[edit] Cover versions
- Flora Almeida called her cover version "Verniz"
- Anggun - Snow on the Sahara (1998)
- Django Bates - You Live and Learn (Apparently), with vocals by Josefine Lindstrand (2004)
- Michelle Branch covered the track for a 2005 CD for The Gap
- Coro - 300% Energy (various artists) (1996)
- Desford Colliery Caterpillar Band - Continental Brass
- The Diamonds - Million Copy Hit Songs Made Famous By Elton John & David Bowie
- Steffi DiDomenicantonio - Canadian Idol performance
- The Dresden Dolls, during A Life In The Day Of The Dresden Dolls, a featurette on their DVD Live In Paradise
- Eurythmics - London, England, New Year's Eve Performance
- The Flaming Lips, whose rare version features heavy distortion - "This Here Giraffe EP (1996)
- Yann Tiersen & Neil Hannon (The Divine Comedy (band)), featuring Tiersen on toy piano and Hannon providing vocals - Tiersen's live Black Session album (1999)
- Seu Jorge - Portuguese version for the film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
- Alain Kan called his version "La Vie En Mars?"
- John Keating - Space Experience 2
- The King Singers - Keep On Changing and This Is (1980) as well as single
- London Symphony Orchestra - Symphonic Rock: The British Invasion, Volume 2 (1998)
- Anni-Frid Lyngstad - "Frida ensam" (1975) - Swedish language version named "Liv på Mars?"
- Manix - Ashes To Ashes: A Tribute To David Bowie (1998)
- Steve Nieve – Playboy
- Cæcilie Norby - My Corner of the Sky (1996)
- Phish - live on tour in 1996 (released on Steeltown) and 2003
- Frank Sidebottom - "Sci-Fi" 12 inch EP
- Snake Charmer - Backyard Boogaloo (2003)
- Snakepit Rebels
- Barbra Streisand – Butter Fly (1974)
- The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain turn the song into a medley, melding it with My Way, For Once in My Life, Born Free and Substitute
- Tripod Performed on their Pod August Nights tour, 2006
- Rick Wakeman - Piano Album (1995)
- Wall Street Crash - Wall Street Crash (1983)
- Jeff Duff Band - "Lost in the Stars" (2006)
Bowie's guitarist/arranger Mick Ronson also wrote a song called "Life on Mars?" (released on a 1997 reissue of his 1975 album Play Don't Worry) but the two tracks shared only their title. [1]
The song was referenced by the Bush song "Everything Zen," which also featured the line "Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow".
The BBC time travel television series Life on Mars is named after the song, which is playing on the iPod in lead character Sam Tyler's car when his accident happens in 2006, and still playing on an 8-track tape when he awakes in 1973.
The American singer/songwriter Happy Rhodes recorded a song early in her career called "Life on Mars" in tribute to Bowie, and released it on the compilation album The Keep, but the song itself has no relation to Bowie's version.
[edit] References
- Pegg, Nicholas, The Complete David Bowie, Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, 2000, ISBN 1-903111-14-5
- BBC Radio 2 webpage on the song
- Lyrics for this song from LyricWiki.org
| David Bowie |
|---|
| Studio Albums |
| David Bowie | Space Oddity | The Man Who Sold The World | Hunky Dory | The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars | Aladdin Sane | Pin Ups | Diamond Dogs | Young Americans | Station to Station | "Heroes" | Low | Lodger | Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) | Let's Dance | Tonight | Never Let Me Down | Black Tie White Noise | Outside | Earthling | 'hours...' | Heathen | Reality |
| With Tin Machine |
| Tin Machine | Tin Machine II |
| Live Albums |
| David Live | Stage | Ziggy Stardust - The Motion Picture | Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby | Santa Monica '72 | Bowie at the Beeb | LiveAndWell.com |
| Soundtracks |
| Christiane F. | Labyrinth | The Buddha of Suburbia | |
| Related Articles |
| Tony Visconti | Brian Eno | Mick Ronson | Iggy Pop |
